


you made flowers grow in my lungs, and although they are beautiful, i cannot breathe

by the_geek_in_the_nook



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Alternate Universe - No Powers, F/M, Slow Burnish, and the twist introduces, but with a twist, kind of a soulmate tattoo au?, waaay too much angst
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-04-06
Updated: 2018-05-02
Packaged: 2018-10-15 20:40:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 11,527
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10557378
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/the_geek_in_the_nook/pseuds/the_geek_in_the_nook
Summary: When Marinette met Adrien, flowers burst over her heart - literally. But what happens when your soulmate doesn't share your tattoo?Title quote from Tumblr





	1. you made flowers grow-and grow-and grow

When she saw Adrien the first time, Marinette felt as if her face were the sun. But after she excused herself and retreated to her safe apartment building, blushing bright enough to power several cities, she wondered if Adrien might've been the sun. Because there, right above the spot where her body was busying itself by pushing out nervous breaths, was a flower.

 

* * *

 

Marinette was 23 and still as clumsy as when she was 14. Her best friend usually tried to act as her personal damage control, but even Alya wasn't omnipresent.

 

But, considering Alya's constant need to 'fix' Marinette's love life, Alya probably would've shoved her into the god that Marinette had crashed into.

 

"Are you OK?" the god frantically asked, and Marinette might've been able to produce a legible reply if he hadn't followed his question with, "I guess you really fell for me, huh?"

 

"Eugh-Duh."

 

The blonde man, who had the misfortune to be directly in the trajectory of a clumsy Marinette, turned bright red and carefully helped Marinette to a standing position, then nervously scratched the back of his neck. "I'm so sorry - are you sure you're OK? Do you need--"

 

"I'm fine." Marinette interrupted, wondering in the back of her head if she should paint her freckles black, because she was sure that she was red enough now to become a ladybug; she just needed the spots. Maybe she could fly away from this horrible situation. "Really, I should be the one asking if you're ok. I MEAN- obviously you're ok- you're better than ok- I would even say you're perf--. BUt, are you sure you're not hurt?"

 

"I'm fine! Really! But-"

 

"My name's Marinette." she interrupted again, looking up into the god- no, man's eyes and smiling, her short black hair blowing into her eyes, despite the red ribbon that was supposed to keep it back. Really, wasn't short hair supposed to be easier to maintain?

 

"Adrien." he returned, rubbing the back of his neck and looking around the street. "I'm a physics major at the college down the street."

 

Marinette grimaced, and then blushed. "Sorry!" she squeaked. "I'm not a huge fan of physics -- or of science - in general."

 

Adrien laughed and Marinette wondered how she was so lucky as to have that sound bestowed on her. Then she wondered how it would be possible to get the man to repeat the sound one more time.

 

"Um, I go to that college as well though. Actually, just returning from my last class today. Um, you know, to sleep probably. But, um, I'm a fashion design major? So, probably no sleep at all. Just mock-ups."

 

Adrien winced. "Sorry, doesn't sound fun at all. But, talking about classes, I should probably get to mine! That's where I'm headed."

 

Marinette looked up, still blushing. "Oh, ok then! Um, well take care. Thanks for catching me and, you know, not suing me."

 

Adrien smiled and began to turn away. "Well, thanks for falling for me." He turned bright red again and began to walk rapidly to the college up ahead. "See you around, Marinette!"

 

"Yeah." Marinette whispered, as she opened the door to her building. "Hopefully." She clutched her chest, which was burning as if it had taken all of the brightness of Marinette's face and transferred it to her lungs, like,  _ “You obviously need more energy to deal with the hopelessness of this human being. Please. Take it. It’s very hard to keep this one alive.” _

 

“I should call Alya.”

* * *

  
  


“I’m serious, Alya! This was the most perfect person that ever existed!”

 

_ “Well, that’s impossible, but skipping over that improbability, let’s get into the nitty-gritty. Who exactly was this person that has stolen my bestie’s heart?” _

 

“His name is Adrien.”

 

_ “I can literally hear you swooning right now.” _

 

“You would swoon too! He was so sweet… and funny… and gorgeous… He’s perfect.”

 

_ “That was already discussed. Skip over that.” _

 

“He even goes to the same college as us! He’s a physics major.”

 

Alya snorted and Marinette sighed. She was standing, in the small kitchen of her apartment as Alya’s voice came through the tinny speaker of her phone.

 

_ “Girl, how does that help you? Our uni is literally the largest one in Paris; the science department is nowhere near your classes.” _

“Ok, ok, you raise a valid point.” Marinette clutched her chest again. “Listen, Alya, let me talk to you later. I need to get going.”

 

_ “Wait what?? I just made time for, like, three hours of Marinette gushing about perfectness of **Adrien**” _

 

“Bye. Alya.” Marinette said, and hung up before Alya could protest more. She clutched her chest again. What was going on? Why was her chest still hurting?

  
Well, she could check it out as she got changed.

 

As she made her way to her bedroom, she wondered if Alya was right in being wary. But, Adrien-- she couldn’t get him out of her mind. His smile, his laugh, his teasing, his gentleness as he caught her and helped her up-- he really was perfect, she concluded, as she tore off her shirt.

 

Only for all thoughts of anything to fly out of her head as she stared at the dark purple flower that had appeared, in the empty space between her breasts, directly below her collarbone. A flower tattoo that had most definitely not been there this morning. The only thought that had any meaning to her at that moment was the repeating thought “He made a flower grow in my lungs.”

* * *

  
  


Ok, so technically, it wasn’t her lungs. But, it was close enough, and besides, the flowers were beginning to spread. Marinette was no botanist, but she was able to recognize daisies and roses (whites and pinks), as they spread over the anatomically correct location of her lungs, growing with leaves and branches that all intermingled, as if each species of flower were actually one that grew on a single root. And they were. They grew on Adrien.

 

It was rare, but not uncommon, to hear about tattoos that appeared after meeting your soulmate. Marinette had seen the stories on the news, but had never personally met anyone who had found their soulmate through a tattoo. There were the heartbreaking stories, of people who found their soulmates after they had married or who had met their soulmate only for them to die in their arms, but most stories were like Marinette’s. A chance encounter and then the pair sprouted tattoos, though they may not be exactly alike, they would match. For her garden, Adrien might have more flowers. Or maybe a sunny sky. Or garden critters. But, there was no denying it. Adrien was her soulmate- the burning sensation in her chest confirmed it, along with the flowers that spread under her collarbone. She was one of the few who had a soulmate.

 

Marinette fell asleep with a smile in her face and flowers in her lungs.

 

* * *

 

But flowers die, Marinette learned. Flowers wither and petals fall. And apparently, flowers grow without even needing nourishment. Adrien didn’t come back to see her the next day or the day after that and Marinette, in her growing embarrassment and panic, decided not to tell Alya about the flowers or bring up soulmarks at all.

 

But her internet history was full of questions.

 

_ what do you do if your soulmate doesn’t come back _

 

_ how to find your soulmate _

 

_ matching soulmarks _

 

_ why would your soulmate stay away _

 

_ what did i do wrong? _

 


	2. what a pain it is, is it not?

Marinette quickly learned how much breathing was a chore.

Every day, she pushed breaths through those nervous, brave, things called lungs. But it had never seemed so hard as when flowers criss-crossed over them. Why didn't the golden man return? 

 

* * *

 

 

"Alya, what do you know of soul marks?"

The ombre haired girl looked at Marinette over the top of her glasses. She paused, observing the way the bluish black hair glistened in the sun, casting a shadow over her friend's face as she looked up at the sky. They were sitting in an outdoor cafe, passing time till Alya's next class.

"The tattoos, right?" Alya tried on a grin. It felt strange, and unnatural, especially in light of her friend's strange behavior. "What? Are you worried that Adrien won't come back to you because you guys didn't get matching marks?"

Marinette looked back at Alya and tried on a smile. It didn't look right on her, either. "C'mon, give me a chance to hope for romance! What do you know? Do they appear if the soulmate gets a tattoo? What?!"

Alya looked at her cup. "I don't know. All the stories I've heard just say that the marks appeared after the soulmates met each other. They had to actually speak to each other though. Fate wasn't so cruel as to make a person realize they have a soulmate by a passing individual. Why, love?"

"Thinking of getting a tattoo."

"Ooh, then maybe Adrien will get a tattoo to match!"

The girls laughed, but Marinette's eyes didn't match the joy she projected she felt.

 

* * *

 

Alya ran off and Marinette had to laugh. Fate wasn't so cruel? Then why were there flowers growing along her chest, clawing their way to her neck? She scoffed as she made her way to the bathroom mirror, stripping off her shirt as she did. She passed her fingers over the bright colors, wondering what they were. And then, for the millionth time since she had met him, Marinette thought of Adrien. "They are beautiful, Adrien." she murmured. "But, I cannot breathe."

 

* * *

 

"Marinette?"

Marinette's eyes shot open. She was laying on the green of the college campus, 17 days after she had met Adrien. She couldn't help keep track of their meeting. In fact, her flowers seemed to try and keep track for her. They grew up and around her, pushing up blooms as if they could give some sort of hope to the mess that Fate had landed her in. Marinette had long given up wearing some sort of shirt that could cover them up, because now they were past her collarbone and beginning to move down her right arm. She had played it off as a tattoo to Alya, an "ongoing project", as she had deemed it. But, how much would her flowers grow?

"It is you! Marinette!"

She sat up and squinted her eyes toward the sound of her name. Then she stood up and ran to greet her best friend, who was waving quite enthusiastically from the opposite side of the campus. 

"Mari, how bout you and I blow off our well intended plans for responsibility this evening, and make our way to a bar with some fine gentlemen I've met?"

Marinette laughed. "Alya, you and I both know there were no 'well intended plans for responsibility', at least on your part."

Alya grinned. "Shush, Mari, I'm trying to make a good impression on these ones. Whaddaya say?"

Marinette paused. She knew she had a soulmate, the flowers were a testament towards that. But, he seemed to have no feelings at all towards her, as evidenced by his lack of appearance over the past two weeks. So, why not go and try to have a night of fun on the town? What more harm could come to her?

"Let's go."

* * *

 

"Okay, I love you, but please tell me you don't intend to go out in that."

Marinette looked down at her outfit, a black and red spotted shirt that tucked into her high-waisted shorts, then looked back at Alya. "Alya, it's not like I'm wearing sweats and an old tee. This is a perfectly fine outfit to wear."

"I guess. I just, I don't know, want you to try something a little more daring! I mean, you got that tattoo, I would hope that you intended to match your bravery with a little more  _side action_ , if you know what I mean."

Marinette gave Alya a deadpan stare and then started marching up the street, yelling over her shoulder, "Well, either come now, or you will never get to see the indomitable Marinette in action."

Indomitable. Yeah right. Try saying that to the golden man who plagued her thoughts.

But, undeterred, Marinette began to walk backwards as she yelled back to Alya. "You will never see how high waisted shorts make men quiver. Or see how ladybug inspired shirts make them weak in the knees. I, myself, have mastered the action of seducing men and -- OOF."

Marinette looked into amused green eyes and wondered what on earth she had done to be thrust into this fresh hell.

* * *

Marinette could hear Alya calling her name, but all she could see were green eyes and blond hair. "Looks like you fell for me again." He whispered and Marinette almost blushed and began to stutter her apologies, but then she remembered late night internet searches and blooming flowers.

She stood up, quickly and abruptly. "Be careful, Adrien," she said, turning to look at him over her shoulder. "Or you might be falling for me next."

Alya came running up then, so Marinette didn't see the way Adrien's face flushed, or the way he stared at her flower tattoos. All she could see, really, was flowers and heartache, all stenciled into her lungs.

"Oh, so you met Adrien already." Alya said, sounding disappointed. "Well, you'll still get to meet Nino."

"What?"

"Didn't he tell you?" Alya asked, her hair fanning around her like fire and smoke. "They're the ones we're meeting up with."

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> lol short, but i wanted to give you something before the weekend. basically look at any fanart of inking indigo and understand that Marinette looks exactly like her.  
> anyways, thank you all so much for your comments! i loved them so much, and would have responded to each of them, if it weren't for the fact that i would be giving away some major spoilers.  
> much love, and see you next time  
> (and by see you, i, of course mean, i won't see you at all)


	3. beware the colors - step closer if you dare

Marinette decided, right then and there, that Fate, or whatever controlled soul mates, hated her.

“Marinette, is something wrong?” Alya asked, turning to rush back to her friend, equal parts energy and fire. Marinette watched her come, feeling as if she were just an onlooker in her life. Look there she was, the short-haired disaster, with flowers clawing their way into her lungs so she would stop breathing. Black shirt with red polka dots, and flowers. But her flowers were everywhere weren’t there? High-waisted shorts and flats. Wasn’t she beautiful? Then why did Adrien flirt with her and run away? What even was that? A flirt and run?

And there was Alya, her hair flowing down her back. It was funny, wasn’t it? When they were lycée, everyone was convinced that Alya would be the one to cut her hair and Marinette would just always have her twin pigtails. Maybe that’s why Marinette showed up to graduation with a pixie cut, just to show them all. Alya’s all curves, but she doesn’t make you think of soft shapes, but rather danger and red. And she’s calling her name. Really, Marinette should respond. But, she’s curious now. Where exactly will Fate sucker punch her next?

“Can we talk real quick, Al?”

Alya stops, and turns to Adrien and another boy and makes a shooing motion. The unknown boy shrugs his shoulders and turns to the bar, while Adrien (really Marinette can’t help but watch everything that boy does) hesitates before joining his friend.

“What’s up, Mar?”

Alya is up close, her hair brushed behind her ears, glasses smudged and her mole marking her body to make sure perfection isn’t quite attained. Marinette drinks it in; it’s familiar and she needs air, not this strange underwater hell she’s swimming in. 

“Al’ this is Adrien. You know, **Adrien**. The perfect guy? What is he doing here?”

“This is _the_ Adrien? Ah, crap! The one you’ve been pining for? The flirt who break my best friends heart?”

Marinette sighed. “I have not been pining for him”  _ Liar _ . “And how could he break my heart? I only spoke with him once! Not exactly a recipe for heartbreak.” _ Flowers are though. Did you know that? I didn’t. Flowers are supposed to help heartbreak, not cause it. Right? _

Alya looked skeptical. “Whatever you say, girl. But, I didn’t know! I mean, what are the chances that I would meet up with _ the _ Adrien?!”

“Yeah, you’re right. I’m sorry. That just kind of blind-sided me. Let’s just go in.”

Alya nodded slowly, and put her arm around her friend’s neck. “Well, let’s get drunk and forget about perfection, eh?”

Marinette laughed, long and hard. “Oh, Al. It’s like you can read my mind.”

* * *

 

Adrien looked at the closing door behind him and then turned back to his friend. “Do you think that Marinette is okay?” he asked, worriedly.

Nino looked back at his friend as he made his way through the crowd and tried to find a table that wasn’t occupied. “Marinette?”

“The girl who fell onto me.”

“Which time?”

Adrien gave the door one last glance. “Both times. She’s the same girl.”

Nino looked back at his friend and whistled. “What are the chances? This is the same girl who fell onto you, who you flirted with and caused you to run into class with a face brighter than the sun? And she fell onto you  _ again _ , and now you’re gonna go drinking with her? That’s far out, man.”

Adrien pushed his hand through his hair. “I even used the same line. What exactly am I thinking?”

Nino laughed. “Well, I don’t know what you’re thinking, but I’m thinking we should find a table before those girls come in.”

Adrien pulled himself up. “You’re right.”

“Aren’t I always?”

“Tell that to your physics grade.”

The boys laughed and bantered as they made their way through the bar crowd, finding a small table tucked in the corner of the store. Nino held the seat, and began to frantically wave to the two girls who just walked into the bar. Alya waved back and began to walk towards the boys, dragging her short friend behind her.

“Hey guys, sorry about that. Marinette had a little clothing emergency from her fall into Adrien.” Alya said, laughing as she shoved her friend, who grinned back. Adrien looked closely at Marinette, and then blushed when she looked back and blinked slowly up at him. Her eyes were so blue.

“I believe I fell  _ for _ Adrien, Alya. Isn’t that right, Adrien?”

Was this girl trying to kill him?

“Anyways, besides giving Adrien a heart attack, we’re alright now!” finished Alya, gesturing around her. Nino laughed and Alya winked at him. “Alright, so Marinette know Adrien, but I don’t believe that she has met you yet. Marinette meet Nino, the real reason we’re meeting here.”

Marinette smiled at the boy, and Adrien wanted to punch Nino. What? Where did that come from?

“Nice to meet you, Nino.” she said and then looked down at the table, then back up at the boys. “Well, I don’t know about the rest of you,” she said slowly, “But I’m planning on forgetting all of my responsibilities and getting good and properly drunk.”

Nino grinned at her. “You’re speaking my language, girly. Bring on the drinks!”

* * *

 

A couple of hours later and Adrien was sure that Marinette was drinking a little too much. He tried to distract her, but every time he would start to say something, she would guzzle down whatever she was drinking, or drag Alya to the middle of the dance floor. Which was a problem, since the bar didn’t  _ have _ a dance floor.

But now, her glass is being refilled, and he’s pretty sure he should try and stop her from drinking it. So he tries again, with Nino and Alya chatting happily next to him, “Marinette, are those flowers new?”

She looks up at him, searching with those blue eyes and Adrien wishes he knew what she was looking so hard for. “Yeah, they’re an ongoing project.” she finally says, pulling her shirt  up, as if she was trying to cover them. 

“They’re beautiful.” he tries again and she smirks into her glass. Warning bells toll behind Adrien’s eyes and he flails for something more to say before Marinette can down yet another drink. Then a savior arrives in the form of Nino.

“Pretty flowers for a pretty girl, eh Adrien?”

Marinette grins at Nino, and Adrien doesn’t know what to think. It’s a wild grin, feral and dangerous. “Oh Nino. Flowers are so much more than pretty.” She pulls on the collar, except she’s pulling it down, and Adrien is shocked, not only to see the bright colors that coil under Marinette’s collarbone, but also by the strange anger he feels in her showing off her tattoo. Why? It’s her tattoo. “Haven’t you heard?” Marinette continues. “Bright flowers warn you of poison.” 

Nino laughs. “Poison?”

She nods, suddenly looking old and tired, staring down into her drink. “Poison.” Marinette looks up once more, grinning, “And poison is a woman’s weapon, isn’t it?”

“And on that note!” Alya says, standing up and moving to Marinette’s side. “I do believe that Marinette needs to go home before she does something stupid, like take off her shirt.”

Marinette laughs, loudly and shortly. “Oooh, maybe I should! Then you could see allll of my flowers! Good idea, ‘lya.” She leans in, and whispers loudly to the group. “Maybe you could find out what the root of my flowers are.”

Nino looks amused “Is that supposed to be some kind of innuendo? Clever girl.”

Marinette just smiles, as she hugs her friends neck, who’s beginning to look concerned. “Naughty Nino. My flowers aren’t innuendos.” She begins to whisper again. “My flowers are choking me. Slowly. And every day they grow and grow. “ Marinette gestures from her breasts to her throat, “And they grow and grow and even I don’t know when they’ll stop.”

And maybe he’s been drinking too much as well, but Adrien swears that he can see one of the vines that connect the flowers sprout a leaf.

* * *

 

The next morning, Marinette stares at her reflection, wearing nothing but an old bra and sleep shorts. She touches the biggest flower, her first flower, the purple petals sprouting evenly right between her breasts, and traces it up to she gets to the newest addition, the vine that has begun to climb to past her collarbone and around her neck.

“Yes, Adrien.” she whispers, “I told you once, didn’t I? They’re very beautiful.”  She slowly drops her hand and pulls on a shirt. “But they’re also such a deadly, deadly poison.

And her computer is filled with even more searches.

_ how far can a soulmark grow _

_ when do they stop growing _

_ how can you make them stop growing _

_ why do soulmarks grow _

_ do growing soulmarks mean that you’re loved in return? _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so i've also been drawing some art to go with the story. in fact, it's kind of my inspiration. please let me know if you would like to see some of this...  
> i have no idea how far this story is going to go, but i can promise you a happy surprise in the next three chapters. mixed with some sadness of course.  
> now for some answers to some questions.  
> marinette's flowers are not actual flowers, they're just tattoos that grow.  
> if you didn't gather from this chapter, adrien does not have a soulmark. yet.   
> marinette has guessed that adrien does not have a soulmark, but there are no recorded cases of this ever happening, so she doesn't know for sure.
> 
> thank you so much for your comments!! not to say that i don't appreciate your kudos, but those comment have a special place in my heart. thank you so much.


	4. the meaning of flowers

_what do flowers mean_

_flower symbolism_

“Adrien, why are so kind? Why do you make it so easy to fall in love with you? Why do you make it so easy to stay?”

* * *

**Scabious: Mourning**

Marinette found it ironic that her first flower, which she identified as a dark purple Scabious, meant mourning. She thought about it often, especially since the majority of her time seemed to be spent in sewing or walking to class.

“Ms. Dupain-Cheng, would you kindly tell me what this designer used to create the flower effect in last spring’s dress collection?”

Marinette squinted at the picture at the front of the class and answered. “This design was created by Gabriel Agreste two seasons ago, where the seamstress will stitch several yards and then pull, to create a flower. Although it seems simple, the design can only be accomplished by hand, not machine sewing, and requires meticulous planning in order to be sure the final product will have enough fabric and so that the stitching is even.”

The professor, an irritable and stoic man, looked surprised that Marinette actually the knew the answer, but nodded and continued to drone on, while Marinette stared at the blank computer screen in front of her. The blinking cursor seemed to taunt her, as the girl remembered the internet searches over the past couple weeks. Why was this class so long?

* * *

**Carnation, Striped: Maybe or uncertainty**

“Mari, you should come out with me tonight! We’re gonna watch a new movie, that new American film you were wanting to see.”

Marinette smiled at her best friend, then looked down at her bag which was overflowing with fabric and notebooks. “I don’t know, Al…”

“C’mon, Mari! It will be fun. We’re gonna go with Nino and Adrien~”

Marinette ignored the suggestive look her friend gave her and the violent burn she felt under her collarbone, where she suspected another flower was being born. She wasn’t sure what to feel about Adrien anymore and she suspected that’s why her flowers were growing.

“Maybe another time, Al. I really need to wrap up these projects.”

* * *

**Crocus: Abuse Not**

Marinette liked to work alone in her apartment, with some Jagged Stone in the background, usually in sleep shorts and a sports bra, so she could look at her flowers. Was she a masochist, for staring at these flowers that seemed to hurt her? Marinette didn’t like to think so.

She had been working on a project for her design class, but had tired of stabbing herself with her embroidery needle. Marinette was trying to re-create the flower stitch so that it resembled the Scabious on her chest. She figured that as long as she had these flowers on her, she could use them for inspiration.

But, now Marinette was working on her project for her art class, one of her favorite courses. It was mainly working with paints and pencils, and she had picked the class in order to help with her sketches. Lately, Professor Sheng had them working with watercolors, a concept Marinette was finding difficult as she had a) no money with which to buy quality watercolors and b) little patience to work with watercolors.

She looked down at her painting, that was supposed to be a figure  walking in a meadow, and sighed. The bright colors of the painting seemed to taunt her and she closed her eyes and found herself thinking of Adrien. Was he having fun with Nino and Alya? Was he thinking of her?

“How can you hurt me?” she wondered, as she began to sketch a tall boy in the meadow. “When you don’t even know me?”

She picked out a brush and began to carefully paint the figures’ hair with a light yellow. “Don’t break my heart, without even knowing that you hold it.” she whispered, and hastily put away the painting before she could ruin it with her tears.

* * *

**Geranium, Nutmeg: Unexpected Meeting**

It was hard work to identify the flowers that grew on her and Marinette wasn’t even sure if the meanings had anything to do with her situation. But, every day, she noted the new flower that had grown and tried to find it. Most of the flowers were repeats of former days, like roses or daisies or the geraniums. But, the work was relaxing, like figuring out something of her tattoos was a way of coping with Fate.

“Marinette, right?”

Marinette looked up to the boy who was standing over her. He was tall, she noted, taller than Adrien. Adrien had somehow become her basis for measuring everyone.

“Yes, that’s me.” she said, and turned her chair so she was facing the boy.

He grinned and Marinette too that moment to casually look over him. He wasn’t bad looking, she thought. He was fit and lean, like a dance, and had all the measured grace of a dancer with the artful carelessness that only a worn out artist can attain.

“My name’s Nathaniel.” said the boy, and Marinette smiled up at him. “I just wanted to see if you would like to help me out with Prof Sheng’s assignment- the Mixed Media and Working from Sketches?”

Marinette groaned. “Please don’t remind me of that assignment. I like to keep final assignments in the corner of my mind, where it can only taunt me when the time comes to turn it in.” That assignment was a monster. It was taking three beginning sketches from the first portfolio Marinette had submitted, and then using different mediums to recreate the sketches, and then showing how you had improved the sketches in some form or another.

Nathaniel laughed. “I know, but I can’t help but begin to worry about it. I saw your flower the other day and thought you would be perfect to help me out with this project.”  
Marinette nodded. Professor Sheng had each student in her class present their portfolios at least twice in the semester, and Marinette had just presented hers last class, where everyone had oohed and ahhed over her oil color painting of her dark purple Scabious, where she had struggled to recreate an x-ray tattoo, where she showed the veins of the flower, as if the petals were paper thin.

“So, you want to recreate the x-ray flower?” she said, and began to shuffle through her bag to find her sketchbook where she had first come up with the idea.

“Actually, I was talking about your tattoos.”

Marinette paused, her hands still in her bag and turned to look up at Nathaniel. “My tattoos?”

He laughed and began to scratch the back of his head. “Well, the first sketch I did in this class was the one where Prof. Sheng had us sketch different classmates, and one of my sketches was you. I noticed you got new tattoos when you presented your portfolio last class, and I had this great idea to do an overlay with watercolors with your flowers popping up as the only bit of color.”

Marinette’s hands fluttered over her flowers and she nodded. “So, you want to sketch some of the flowers?”

Nathaniel nodded back. “I know it’s a bit weird, but--

Marinette interrupted him, shaking her head. “No, it’s a great idea. I have a design project I need to finish tonight, but I don’t have any classes tomorrow. Do you want to meet then?”

“Sure! I have a class that runs till noon, how ‘bout we meet at the quad cafe? I can treat you to a coffee, provided it doesn’t run over four euros. I’m the definition of a starving artist.”

They both laughed, and went their separate ways, both of them wondering why the other seemed to laugh with a note of sadness and why the other looked at the world with shattered eyes and pierced lungs.

* * *

 **Amaranth:** **_love lies bleeding,_ ** **hopeless, heartless**

Why did the flowers burn when they bloomed?

Why did Adrien smile whenever they hung out?

Why did Marinette do this to herself?

* * *

  **Iris: Inspiration, Your Friendship Means So Much To Me**

Nathaniel and Marinette met up at the quad cafe every day after their initial meeting. Marinette found Nathaniel’s presence calming, especially since he didn’t seem to have any questions about her flowers. She noticed he had a tattoo of his own, a bumblebee flying away from a thorny, red rose.

The initial meeting was full of awkward blunders and stuttering. Marinette had no idea how to sit for the sketch, and Nathaniel had no idea how to tell Marinette that she just needed to relax. So, he put his sketchbook away, and asked Marinette about her day. Slowly, he eased her out of her anxiety and Marinette began to laugh over his anecdotes in a way she hadn’t laughed since her fifth flower bloomed. Nathaniel noticed it and all of a sudden recognized this girl, who was privately breaking with no one taking notice. This was the girl that he had sketched at the beginning of class, with the flowers that bloomed on her skin. He rubbed his arm, where a bumblebee slowly flew away, but never got further away.

But, Nathaniel never got any sketches of her flowers, as every time he grabbed his sketchbook out, Marinette would clam up again. So, they agreed to meet up the next day and Marinette brought along some of her own projects and they worked together in a silent camaraderie.

And then continued to meet,

And then one day, Marinette looked up at Nathaniel and asked, “Would you like to join me and some of my friends for a dinner at my apartment tonight?”

* * *

**Hyacinth, Yellow: Jealousy**

“I’d like for all of you to meet Nathaniel, one of my classmates who’s been helping me work on some of my projects.” Nathaniel looked like he wanted to protest, but Marinette continued. “Nathaniel, I’d like for you to meet Nino, Adrien, and Alya, my best friend.”

Alya surged forward and shook Nathaniel’s hand. “So, you’re the reason why Marinette lost her excuse for being busy with projects.” She grinned. “Pleasure to meet you and thank you for helping Marinette rejoin to her friends from the valley of late projects and stress.”

Nathaniel laughed, and just like that, he was a part of their group. Nino and Adrien began talking with him, while Alya and Marinette watched them and laughed. Marinette looked around, wincing at the sight of Adrien, like she always seemed to do, even if it was mostly inwardly now. This is where she belonged. This is where she was the happiest. She caught Nathaniel’s eye and grinned. She was okay here.

But, while Marinette was feeling a sense of calm, a certain sun child was feeling as if a raincloud had descended on him. Who exactly was this Nathaniel? Where did he come from?

While Marinette had only just met Nino and Adrien, they had spent many weekends together, meeting up at the park, at Alya’s apartment for movie nights, at Nino’s once for a truly disastrous movie night (Nino only believed in watching supremely poor quality movies and Alya believed in burning such movies with an unquenchable fire). They had even met at Marinette’s several times, only for all of them to be destroyed as Marinette, this tiny porcelain girl, absolutely slaughtered them in every type of game they could think of. So, who was this Nathaniel and how did he come to intrude into their friend group.

When Marinette served dinner, she sat next to Nathaniel and Alya, and Adrien, sitting across from the girl, burned right in the middle of his chest. Little did he know, that Marinette’s first flower was burning for her as well. While they talked, Nathaniel would whisper something into Marinette’s ear and she would melt into laughter, a feat that Adrien could never do, seeing as Marinette seemed to have trouble even looking him in the eye. They touched all the time (Marinette was a toucher, and all of her friends seemed to receive her touch. Alya was a moving pillow, Nino found an armrest in Marinette’s shoulders. But when Marinette touched Adrien, she always moved away quickly, as if she were burned.). 

Adrien burned, but he did what he always did. Feelings were enemies and people always wanted to see smiles. So Adrien Smiled and Talked and Made Jokes. 

But, when he said goodbye to Marinette, he pulled her to him in a quick hug and then ran out the door.

That couldn’t hurt, right?

* * *

**Poppy: Consolation**

One day, it hurt too much.

One day, the flowers burned and burned and Marinette was tired. Tired of poppies, and hyacinths, of lilies and roses, and of stupid, purple Scabiosas. She stayed, curled up in her bed in a cover of comforter and sweaters, and only moved when someone knocked at her door.

“Nathaniel?”

The red-haired man was looking concerned as observed Marinette from the safety of the door frame. Marinette could see he was holding a bag with at least one can of chicken noodle soup and a box of green tea (her favorite), and he was about to ask a question, when Marinette broke. It was too much. She held the secret of flowers, and nobody would know it. At least, that was the case in the beginning,but now? Now, she had to tell someone, share her mystery, and Nathaniel was the perfect amount of being there and listening. 

“Marinette?”

She broke and he picked up her pieces.

She started crying and he led her to the couch.

“What I’m about to tell you, you can’t repeat to anyone.”

“Okay?”

She sighed, “Happen to have a glass of wine in that bag of yours?”

* * *

**Daffodil: Unrequited Love**

A bottle, half full. Two glasses, half empty. A tall red-haired man and a tired, dark-haired girl. Both with tattoos and pierced lungs, pierced hearts.

“What do you think about Adrien? No, don’t answer that question.”   
Nathaniel looked confused and Marinette sighed. She sat, cross-legged on the couch, but now she moved so she was clutching her knees, her head only up because she needed to talk.

And so she did. She told him of it all, the burning lungs, the choking flowers, the untold truth and the lies that hid it. She told him of her flowers burn, every time she saw Adrien, and how they never seemed to stop growing. Then she told him the reason

“Adrien doesn’t have a mark.”

“What?”

“Well, I’m pretty sure. When he saw my flowers,” and she ghosted her hand over her collarbone, “he was genuinely surprised. And I’ve seen him half-naked - long story, Nino dared Adrien to jump into the Seine, Adrien was drunk enough to actually do it, and he was down to his underwear and on the rail of the bridge before Alya and I dragged him back to Nino’s apartment. He doesn’t even have a-a beetle or leaf! His mark should begin right here-” and she pointed to a spot in between her breasts and took a swig of wine, “- but there isn’t anything. He doesn’t have a mark, but I got mine right after I met him.”

“Wow.”

“I know.”

They both took a drink from their glasses.

Then Nathaniel looked at her. “Do you want to hear about my tattoo?”

* * *

 

**Peony: Healing**

“I met her in lyc ée, my last year before graduation. She was in one of my classes but we never talked. She was popular, and gorgeous, you know, with pretty blonde hair and everything, but she was spoiled too. Daughter of the mayor, a man who never learned to say no to her. Had a model boyfriend or something.”

Nathaniel looked off into the distance. “She always wore yellow.” He whispered, then shook his head. “Anyways, for all of her faults, I somehow grew to admire her. She was ruthless, yes, but effective. She used to be this huge bully in college, I had heard, but she wasn’t when I met her. Anyways, we got grouped together for some group project and we met at a cafe. It was a beautiful day. We talked, and for some reason, my arm was just burning the entire time. Finally, we both looked down at our arms, and there it was.”

Nathaniel held up his arm and Mariette looked at it. A yellow bumblebee flying away from a thorny red rose. “We had the exact same tattoo. As if Fate was trying to tell us that we were obviously soulmates. I was ecstatic, of course. But she just grew really pale and left quickly.” 

He took another swig of wine. “Next thing I knew, she had transferred class and left the teacher her side of the project. At least, she made sure that I wouldn’t have to do her work. I was confused, obviously, and confronted her at graduation.”

Marinette could see the scene, almost before Nathaniel told her. A teenaged red-haired boy with Nathaniel’s eyes pulling a faceless blonde girl to the side and showing her his tattoo, a tattoo that she shared. “She told me that it was  mistake, that her soulmate had to be someone else. Her boyfriend, I guess. Told me that we could never be soulmates and then she just -- left.”

They both stared off into the distance, the two people that Fate had messed up. “I think you’re pretty lucky, Marinette.”

“Nathaniel?”

“Well, would it be better to have a mark that always grows, or one that will always be dead?”

They were silent for some time, slowly making their way through that bottle of wine.

“Let’s make our own fate.”

Nathaniel looked up at the tiny girl next to him. “Mari?”

She stared at the door then to him, her eyes bright with a fire that he couldn’t quite understand. “Let’s make our own soulmates, our own story.”

And then she pushed herself up.

Or maybe he leaned down.

But, they still met, right in the middle.

* * *

  
**Daffodil: ~~Unrequited love~~ , New Beginnings**

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *wild cackling*  
> so, three guesses to who Nathaniel's soulmate is??  
> lol, imagine Adrien's reaction- oh wait! you won't need to ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)   
>  anyways, i created a side-tumblr account where i will be posting art that i created (shocked yelling from all directions), if you, you know, want to see crappy art (disappointed sighs). you can find at at the url below.  
> also, you can ask me any questions regarding this fic or submit any photos. everything regarding this story can be found under the hashtag: flowerskill.  
> oh loveys, we've just begun this wild run.
> 
> tumblr:
> 
> https://thegeekinthenook.tumblr.com/


	5. flowers make poisons too

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Maybe Adrien will have a better point of view in all of this...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> im not dead  
> but you're gonna want to kill me anyways

Adrien fell to the ground, his chest and lips burning for no discernible reason. He staggered to the bathroom, slowly pulling off his shirt and examined himself in the mirror. His chest was blank, only the smooth skin showing in the large mirror and his lips were fine, slightly chapped, but that was all. So why did it feel like someone was applying a burning rod to his chest, his lips? It was so hard to breathe.

He knelt on the ground, his hand slowly tracing his collarbone, inexplicably thinking of Marinette and the flowers that intrigued him so much. He was probably dying of a stroke - but his mind lingered on the flowers, on Marinette, on blossoms and colors. They were so bright - both the girl and the blooms. 

Adrien sighed, both relieved that his chest was behaving again, and disappointed over the realization that Marinette  _ was _ bright. But lately, Marinette seemed to have drooped, like she hadn’t got enough water and was slowly running out of air. She had seemed so full of life when he first met her, so vibrant and alive that he couldn’t stop thinking about her. He was even reprimanded several times by his bewildered physics professor, who couldn’t understand why his perfect student was so distracted. Then he had seen her again, when he was out with Nino. He smiled, remembering how he had struggled so much when Nino had dragged him out of the apartment, complaining that he had no desire for company when he had so much to do already.

* * *

“C’mon, man. You’ve been going on about this clumsy girl and physics equations, so much, that I’m scared you’re gonna dissolve in this apartment.” Nino had said, half-dragging him out

* * *

And then he had seen her, polka-dotted and vibrant, bragging to her laughing, red-headed friend about her abilities as a femme fatale, until she had bumped into Adrien. He had almost laughed, tickled at the strange repeat of their first meeting and even repeated his same words to the girl, -  _ looks like you fell for me again.  _  He had expected the same response -  _ the same cute response, he thought, _ \- only for her to stun him completely. 

“Be careful, Adrien.” - oh, how he loved the slanting way she said his name, curved around a grin tinged with fire and sadness - “ Or you might be falling for me next."

Gravity called, she had suggested it, and so - he fell.

“Did I cause those?” he had wondered, dazedly,  as he watched Marinette rush back to her friend, mesmerized by the flowers that appeared from under the polka dotted shirt. “Did I make those bloom from my touch?” She had bewitched him - had she also stolen his soul? Was she really --?

“You comin’ loverboy?”

Adrien blushed and followed Nino into the bar, looking back at the petite girl who had dragged her friend down the street. She was looking distant, and Adrien shook his head at his previous thoughts. How could he cause her tattoo if he didn’t get one himself? That’s how soulmates worked.

* * *

Adrien paused his recollection as he looked at the parts of his body that had been burning for no discernible reason. He remembered her yelling that night, yelling about growing flowers and choked lungs, and what he had seen - or what he had thought he had seen. Had that flower really grown in front of his eyes or was he just drunk? He undressed and walked into the shower, letting the warm water soak their way into his hair, the irony of warmth dampening sunshine. 

Marinette had been drunk that night, he recalled as he cleaned his hair. She was a strange mixture of loud and sad, yelling about poison and whispering about how her flowers were choking her and how they would never stop growing.

Adrien paused, slowly realizing that Marinette’s flowers  _ hadn’t _ stopped growing. He raised his face to the stream of water, washing off suds and thinking. When he had first seen her flowers, they were just above the collar of her shirt, one petal curling over her collarbone. Now, they were well above her collarbone, curling before they reached the juncture of shoulder and neck, and some of the vines had begun to climb down her left arm, though they could still be hidden under a t-shirt sleeve. 

Adrien got out of the shower, grabbing a towel and running it through his hair, as he let himself get lost in memories. Most of their time had been spent at Alya’s apartment, as she was the only one of them who had a decent sofa and movie collection (glares were sent toward the general thought of Nino). There was one memorable evening where they had met at Marinette’s for a gaming tournament, that quickly turned to a drinking competition, where the loser would have to take a shot. Alya quickly bowed out, knowing of Marinette’s uncanny prowess at nearly any video game, but Nino and Adrien were sufficiently wasted before Nino bowed out as well. But Adrien, was stubborn and determined to win. 

The next thing he knew, the videogames had been put away, and a truth or dare competition had begun and Nino, already far gone, had pointed at Adrien and ordered him to bathe himself in the Seine. Adrien, even more drunk than Nino, had stood up, saluted to his friend, and ran out the door. At least, that’s what happened according to Alya and Marinette. Adrien had no recollection of anything until the bridge.

Alya and Marinette went to chase Adrien down, dragging Nino behind them, who had been laughing maniacally ever since Adrien had left Marinette’s. By the time they had caught up, Adrien had already stripped down to his boxers, and was preparing to swan dive off of the bridge, when Alya and Marinette dragged him down. 

Adrien winced, remembering the way Marinette had looked at him, shirtless and drunk, with so much pain and brokenness. He probably said something stupid, but Marinette just shook her head and took charge, being the most sober out of all of them.

“Let’s just drop him off at Nino’s; it’s the closest besides my apartment, and I don’t think Adrien would be comfortable sleeping on fabric remnants and needles.”

Then he woke up at Nino’s and although the evening should’ve been hilariously regretful, Adrien wasn’t even able to smile. All he could remember was Marinette’s face. The disappointment that had stained her, and he had no idea what he had done.

He shut off the water, and turned back to his room.

* * *

“Hey, isn’t that…” 

Adrien squinted at the quad. It was a sunny day, although everyone knew that the rainiest months were still to come. Under one of the trees, Adrien could see a slight figure, staring at the sky as they lay on the grass. He raised his voice as he finished his question.

“Mari?”

The figure raised their hand and Adrien jogged from the physics building to where Marinette lay. “Hey Mari! What are you doing here?”

She was still lying down, with her eyes were shut, although Adrien knew the exact shade of her eyes - as blue as the sky she was lying under. Her hair was held back with a scarlet ribbon and sprawled out across the grass, creating a wonderful cacophony of colors - bright red ribbon, deep green grass, and black hair that took on a bluish tint underneath the sun.

“Ah, Adrien.” She didn’t even open her eyes. “You always appear to haunt me don’t you?” A wry grin, twisted with some kind of pain he didn’t understand appeared. “But you’re a welcome ghost.”

“How much sleep did you get last night?”

She opened her eyes and mocked outrage. “Are you saying I look tired? Rude! I’ll have you know that I have slept enough for any uni student who has much too much to deal with.” She laughs. “Which is to say not enough- ever.”

Adrien awkwardly scratched the back of his neck as he looked down at the girl below him. He didn’t quite know how to deal with this version of Marinette and he was suddenly aware that this was the first time it was just the two of them talking since, well since their first meeting. He needed distractions, he needed normalcy, and her flowers were somehow taunting him. He opened his mouth to ask about them, to ask the question that always seemed to burn his tongue - _ did I make them grow? -  _ but as always, it never slipped out. Instead, he fell back on their friends, trying vainly to reclaim the normalcy that had evaded their conversation. “Um, anyways. Nino and Alya sent a message to the group chat, did you see it?”

“Hmm, the one about meeting up tonight to try and see stars, but mostly just to drink them?”

Normalcy evaded.“Wha-”

“Champagne, the creator said when he first tasted it, ‘I am drinking the stars.’ Or so the legend goes.”

“Oh.”

Marinette stood up, dusted off her overall shorts, stared at the grass - _ green as his eyes, so why didn’t she look him in the eye _ . “I won’t be able to make it, I made other plans.” She looked up, tilting her head, as she met his gaze, and smiled. “Sorry.”

“Wow, this is the first time I can remember you making plans outside of the group…”

“Strange, how we became a group.” Marinette murmured, and his heart almost stopped  _ (was it wrong? Why was it strange? It felt so comfortable) _ , but then she looked over his shoulder at the clock tower. “Crap, is that the time? I gotta jet, I’ll talk to you later, yeah?”

“Okay, bye. Mari.”

She ran off, and belatedly Adrien noticed her flowers hadn’t grown at all since he last saw her. He shook his head. Her tattoos weren’t any of his business. He needed to get them out of his head. Her flowers couldn’t taunt him, shouldn’t taunt him, and they were obviously private. What he needed to worry about were the clouds coming in, that threatened his evening of star searching.

* * *

Well, that was a bust.” Alya announced, pouting as she looked up at the cloudy sky. “And it was so pretty this morning.”

“C’mon, Alya, you didn’t honestly expect to see any stars, did you? We’re in the middle of Paris.” Nino said.

“Well, at least I could watch the airplanes go across the sky and pretend that they’re shooting stars.”

Adrien watched the two’s exchange, smiling as they poked each other and laughed with each other, wondering how it became so easy to hang out with these people, like he knew them all of his life, not just a couple of months. But, he still missed Marinette.

“Hey Alya.”

“Marshmallow.” said the girl, finger gunning him.

“Where’s Marinette tonight?”

“You know, that sucker didn’t say where she was going!” Alya said, and Adrien began to wonder how much champagne the girl had had. Maybe their next outing should be sans alcohol. “Just a lame text ‘sry i wont be able to com. plans 2nght have fun dont get alchol poisoning.”

“Well, I’m gonna call it a night.” announced Nino, stretching and standing up from the blanket that Alya had brought. “Anyone up for watching a lame movie and yelling at the screen?”

Alya looked thoughtful. “You know, that is exactly what I need tonight.” she said, ignoring Nino’s sound of shock and looking up at Adrien. “You comin’ Marshmallow?”

“I’ll take a rain-check. Next time. I just don’t feel like lame movies tonight.” 

Nino hugged him. “That’s what you always say, man. Someday, I’ll convince you of the benefits of yelling at television screens.”

Adrien grinned and bumped the fist Nino held out. “Cold day in hell, man.”

He watched the couple walk down the street, laughing as Nino pointed out distant streetlights and told Alya that they were stars. She punched him and laughed.

“Crazy fools.” he muttered, shaking his head and grinning. “What was up with that ‘Marshmallow’?” 

He slowly made his way down the street, thinking of the homework he still had to finish before tomorrow, when a familiar laugh caught his attention.

He looked up.

His chest burned.

Black hair, scarlet headband, blue eyes.

And red hair.

* * *

“Marinette?”

The girl looked up and waved, but Adrien didn’t move. This is where she was at? This was who she was with?

“Hey Adrien! How did the star drinking go?” She looked up at the sky. “Seeing as the stars are even more nonexistent tonight than before?”

He swallowed.

They were holding hands.

She was leaning on his arm.

“Actually, we just split up. I have a hot date with late homework that couldn’t be ignored.”

She laughed. It sounded different. Happier, sweeter. He was happy he caused it.

“And here I have a hot date of my own.” said He.

Nathaniel.

Marinette held onto his arm, the arm with the tattoo, and Adrien bristled. Her own tattoos seemed to gleam in the streetlight and Adrien never wanted to touch them more than he did now. She grinned at the man, at Nathaniel, and Adrien seethed. His lungs burned within him, his arm ached, but they were nothing compared to the burn of his heart, and how his chest threatened to collapse on him.

Adrien cleared his throat. Tried to laugh. “So this is why you ditched us, Mare-bear?” Use a nickname. Tease her. Remind her -- of what?

“I’d say my love life is a good reason to ditch the singles group.” Marinette threw back, still grinning saucily, one hand on a raised him, while the other hand loosely held Nathaniels.

_ Her love life. _

Adrien swallowed with some difficulty, and Marinette peered up at him. “Are you alright, Adrien?”

“Think I had too much to drink. I really should take off, homework isn’t going to do itself.”

He tried to smile, but it failed halfway through.

He was already leaving.

* * *

Adrien never finished his physics homework. Instead, he lay on his bed, slowly counting every flower he could think of, every flower emblazoned on Marinettes skin. A red rose.  _ Romance _ . It matched Nathaniel’s thorny rose. Was that intentional? Daisy.  _ Innocence, purity. _ He laughed. That was Marinette. 

He remembered the day he had bumped into her. Her hair was loose that day, not tied behind a bandana or headband, and though it was still as short, it seemed to flow more without the bondage. He couldn’t remember exactly what she had been wearing but it had been white and it flew around her as she fell. She looked like an angel. And then she opened her mouth and out came a barrage of words.

He had laughed. Or he had mean to. Then she looked at him with those big blue eyes, and  _ HeReallyNeededToLeave, I’llSeeYouLater, Right? _

But the blue eyed girl - _ Marinette, he had breathed to himself, as his physics professor yelled at him for the second time _ \- she had haunted him, lurking behind a woefully unbalanced chem equation and unsolved physics equations, until Nino had dragged him out of his apartment.

_ And there she was again _ .

Adrien groaned, and curled around a pillow, his body forming a question mark, much like his own thoughts. Did he- did he like Marinette?

Obviously he had some kind of feelings for the girl. Did he really think that such a wonderful girl would remain single for long? 

She- she was beautiful. And kind. And funny, and endearing, and intelligent, and how was he just realizing-

It didn’t matter.

Marinette was in a relationship and she was happy, happier than Adrien had seen her for awhile.

And he would support her.

The golden boy hugged the pillow tighter.

But, tonight-

Tonight, he needed to gather together the shards of a mask he hadn’t worn in a very long time. He needed to piece it together, glue it together with salt water, and then, he would be there for Marinette.

Because, foremostly, she was his friend.

* * *

“Remind me to never try to drink Alya under the table again,” groaned Nino, much too close to Adrien’s equally aching head. Strange how something can be so similar, but for entirely different reasons.

Adrien smiled, gently and softly. He tried it on for size, found it was a little tight, but he could wear it still. “Do you want some water?”

“Sweet sunshine child -  _ yes _ .”

“Did you know Marinette’s dating Nathaniel?” asked Adrien, his back to the dark skinned boy as he walked to the kitchen. Nino looked up at the Dorito proportioned back, squinting, then returning his head to the hard welcoming surface of Adrien’s table.

“ ‘bout time. Marinette’s been down for too long. Maybe Nathaniel come help her. Lord knows he’s been hanging around long enough.”

So this was expected.

Adrien smiled again, placing a glass of water next to Nino’s head. “I’m glad she’s going out with him. She seemed happy.”

The smile was a tough fit.

But Adrien, like always, could manage.   
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this took forever to get out  
> that last scene with Nino i want to shred into a million pieces  
> *laughs*  
> the fun has only begun  
> still have 2 more arcs to finish with after this one  
> (give you a hint; each arc revolves around two people)  
> (take that as you want it)  
> IN OTHER NOTES: GUYS I WAS JUST LOOKING AT KUDOS AND SO MANY HAVE SUBSCRIBED AND/OR BOOKMARKED THIS STORY?? tHANK yOU!!  
> THANK YOU ALL FOR THE SUPPORT THAT YOU HAVE GIVEN MY STORY  
> I LOVE READING YOUR REVIEWS AND YOUR THEORIES GIVE ME LIFE (tho none of you have the ending yet lol)
> 
> In all seriousness, you guys have been amazing. Thank you for your patience. Hopefully, this next chapter comes a bit easier.


	6. Chapter 6

Marinette couldn’t breathe, her chest burned, and she was crying. All she could see were bright primary colors and all she could think of was  _ pain, pain, pain _ .

“Wake up! Mari! WAKE UP!”

She woke up with a gasp and started sobbing, latching onto the nearest warm body. “It hurts, so bad, it hurts. It hurts.”

“Shh, shh, Mar’, shh.”

“Why,” she continued, whispering into his chest as she curled into a ball. “Why did this have to happen?”

Nathaniel tucked her head under his chin and pulled her comforter tighter around them. “I don’t know, love, I don’t know.”

The tiny girl curled into the larger, warmer body, and drifted back to sleep.

* * *

 

Marinette untangled herself from their tangle of limbs and began to dress for the day, while Nathaniel remained in the bed. She faced him, her eyes bright and alive, despite the obvious nightmare she had had only hours previously. Nathaniel raised an eyebrow, but didn’t say anything while he waited for her to explain the obvious idea she had just come up with.

“We should go away,” she whispered, and Nathaniel’s other eyebrow shot up to join his previously raised eyebrow. “Not like forever,” she hurried out, stumbling over her words in her effort to try and explain herself. “But, take a vacation. Just a weekend - you and me, on a beach or in the mountains, you know, somewhere. No flowers, no roses, no tattoos. Just us.”

“That….” Nathaniel started, before furrowing his eyebrows. “Is a good idea.”

“It is? I mean, of course it is. I know it’s kind of like running away, but it’s also like a… a tactical retreat! We can, I don’t know, re-organize? Sort out our thoughts? I mean, this entire thing has just kind of slammed me and I haven’t had the time to process everything - I mean I have a soulmate, but then I don’t, then I start liking another guy…” Marinette trailed off, her cheeks a magnificent shade of red.

Nathaniel nodded quickly, his cheeks matching his own hair. “I agree, Mari. I mean we’re still in uni, but I think a break would be the best thing right now. Let’s make plans and hash it out,” he said, and then stood up, stretching his arms over his frame and crossing the small room to meet his girlfriend. “But now,” he continued, placing a small kiss on her head as she looked up at him. “You’re late, mon chéri.” He laughed and tapped the tip of her nose, while Marinette’s eyes widened and she cursed. She spun around his tall frame, buzzing through the room with nervous energy as she frantically grabbed her textbooks in a mad attempt to regain lost time. She grabbed several pairs of leggings, in an impressive attempt to layer up, before finally giving up and yanking all of them on with Nathaniel’s oversized jacket dwarfing her tiny frame.

“I gotta go, talk to you later,” she managed to wheeze out, as she rushed out the door, doubling back to give her bemused boyfriend a quick peck on the lips, before rushing out the door.

Nathaniel smile at her retreating back, before looking at the clock himself and cursing up a storm.

* * *

 

“You’re doing WHAT?”

Alya’s shout managed to scare off a large flock of pigeons and Marinette winced, covering her ears. Despite the late start she had had, the petite girl looked well-rested and happier than she had been in the last several months.

“I told you, Nathaniel and I are taking off for the weekend. And could you shout a little louder? I want to save myself the work of telling Adrien, but his class is three blocks away, not two.”

“Sarcastic bug.” Alya snorted, crossing her arms and drawing several male eyes to the chest she was inadvertently supporting. Alya noticed the peeping eyes, and growled, her anger at her friend used to scare the perverts. “You just started dating this boy and now you’re going to spend the weekend with him? Please tell me I’m not hearing this correctly.”

“Alya, please. Nathaniel and I have been dating for several weeks now, nearly two months, and we’ve been friends for nearly a year before that. I need this time right now, and so does he. We’re -- re-organizing. Taking a breather.”

Alya looked hurt. “Okay, hun, but..” she bit her lip. “Why didn’t you tell me about this?”

Marinette looked up at her friend in surprise. “About what?”

Alya took a deep breath. “Mar’, for the last like three months, you’ve been totally off. You stopped talking, you barely sleep, you blow me and the gang off for projects that I know you’ve completed, your freakin’ tattoos! And I’ve been patient, I haven’t pushed because I didn’t want to get you mad, but I’m your best friend and I think I deserve some kind of explanation.

Marinette breathed out slowly, wondering if now was the time. “ _ You see, Alya, my flowers aren’t actually tattoos that I’ve chosen, they’re soulmate tattoos and they appeared right after I talked with Adrien! But, he doesn’t have any either. Oh, and I told Nathaniel all of this instead of you.” _

“Mar?”

“Alya- I don’t know- I just. I hit a rough patch. A lot was going on. Adrien and school and then the boy I liked was hanging out with us and then I met another boy and I guess I forgot….”

“You forgot that you aren’t alone in this?” Alya finished. “Honestly, Marinette! You do this all the time. You take the weight of the world on your shoulders and you act like everyone around you will berate you if you drop one single thing! I’m here for you; even if just to listen to you complain.”

Marinette smiled weakly. “I know, Alya. I just forget when I need you the most.

Alya grinned. “Then I’ll just have to remind you, you crazy child.

* * *

“You’re leaving?”

Marinette winced. Adrien’s voice was cracking and her flowers were stinging, and she wanted nothing more than to hold him tight in her arms. Or maybe demand answers from him.  _ Why don’t you have a tattoo? Why do I feel like a storm when I’m around you? Why is breathing a chore ever since I’ve met you? _

“Yeah, me and Nathaniel wanted to take a break from uni for a bit. Proff Shen has been breathing down our necks for this final project and we just need some time to recuperate. And, you know, I’m thinking about adding a business major into my studies..” She trailed off, leaving her plans in the empty air around her.

Adrien nodded, swallowing hard. “I see. Well, I hope you guys have fun. Where are you planning on going?”

“I don’t know – maybe the mountains? Or to the sea? Nathaniel has some friends that might be able to give is some couch space, or we might just sleep in the car.”

“Let me know if you’ll need anything?”

Marinette nodded, even though she knew that she wouldn’t ask him for anything. Not ever. Not since her first flower had bloomed.

* * *

 

“ Le Havre?”

Nathaniel made a noise of assent. “Think about it,mon cheri. It’s only a two and a half hour drive, you love road trips, and it’s right by the ocean. Plus, I have a friend who lives up there.”

Marinette nodded slowly, holding her phone to her ear by means of her shoulder. “I do love a good road trip. I could ask Nino to mix some songs for us.”

Nathaniel laughed. “I love that songs are the first thing you think of.”

Marinette looked at her phone in confusion. “What else would I think about? Songs are super important for a road trip.”

“What about, should we hold the trip off until after the final projects, since it will only be a week, or what we should do during the trip , or maybe what and when you’re going to pack?

“Nope, songs are the most important.”

Nathaniel laughed again. “Well then, does Le Havre sound good? Sometime next week, not this week?”Marinette looked at her phone in confusion. “What else would I think about? Songs are super important for a road trip.”

“What about, should we hold the trip off until after the final projects, since it will only be a week, or what we should do during the trip , or maybe what and when you’re going to pack?

“Nope, songs are the most important.”

Nathaniel laughed again. “Well then, does Le Havre sound good? Sometime next week, not this week?”

“Yeah, that sounds the most wise plan of action. See you tonight?”

“See you tonight.”

Marinette ended the call and looked at her screensaver, smiling softly. She was happy. Right? Absentmindedly, she pushed her fingers against her collarbone, against, what she knew, was a spray of tiny peonies. Her flowers had been burning, not heavily, but steadily, ever since she had begun dating Nathaniel. But she ignored them. She was happy, she wasn’t wallowing, drowning, choking on petals and vines anymore, as Nathaniel wasn’t breaking his heart on bumblebees and thorns. Life was good; she was going to finish her final project and head to the ocean to spend time with her boyfriend. And she definitely wasn’t going to think about a boy with hair as bright as the sun.

* * *

 

Adrien woke up because he couldn’t breathe.

He woke up, drowning in flower petals and the distant image of Marinette, blurred and hunched over. His dreams were full of flowers and plants and Marinette, always distant and too far away for him to reach. But most importantly, Adrien dreamed of burning chests and he always woke up gasping, choking on something that wasn’t even there.

“Just breathe,” he reminded himself, stuttering on his lungs. They had never had a problem of breathing before, but now every breath was a chore. In the darkness, under the moon and half asleep, he drowned, every night.

“She’s not yours. She never was. She’s just a girl.”

His mantra never convinced him of their words. Marinette had seeped into him like rain; she may have never been his, but he had been hers before he even knew her name. How could she be a girl when she was equal parts flower and poison, storm and sun?

And she was in love with Nathaniel.

Sometimes, Adrien wondered when he was ever going to gain his breath back.

* * *

 

“ We’re done, we’re done, we’re done!” Marinette sang, swinging Nathaniel’s hand like a pendulum as they left the art building. Finals week may still be coming, but she and Nathaniel had finished their final project and were  _ free _ . At least for this weekend.

“We’re not quite done, amour - “

“Shh, shh, shhh. We are done for now. We are going to take a wonderful weekend away and we are going to be so very, very happy, and then we will come back to hell.”

Nathaniel laughed as he looked down at the tiny girl beside, who was practically skipping in happiness, her flowers as alive as she looked. “Mar?”

She looked at him, her short black hair fanning around her like a storm cloud.

“Have your flowers been growing – like at all, lately?”

Marinette frowned and pressed her finger to a rose, red and bloody. “Not at all. Ever since we started dating, they’ve just been there.”

“Has there been – anything else?”

Marinette looked at him and sighed. “Nothing at all,” she said, dropping her finger as if it were burned and looking ahead to the path. “Nothing at all,” she repeated, as if trying to convince herself.

  
  
  
  


   
---  
  
  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi  
> im sorry
> 
> I am so sorry. It's been almost a year?? Marinette wanted to go to the beach and I was like, gurl, you can't do that.  
> But she apparently had to.
> 
> You guys are what saved this story. Please continue commenting and asking for updates. I feed on them
> 
> Marinette and Adrien will have some hope!  
> In like four chapters  
> ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯  
> Much love to all.   
> I hope to see you all soon. I've already started the seventh chapter.

**Author's Note:**

> Questions? Fanart? COMplaiNts?  
> Find me on tumblr at:
> 
> https://thegeekinthenook.tumblr.com/


End file.
